Research Area

The primary focus of our research is uncovering mechanisms and physical principles that underlie host-microbe relationships. My group uses mathematical and computational techniques rooted in engineering, nonlinear dynamics, statistics and physics, in particular, statistical physics. A large number of the projects in my group are carried out in synergistic collaboration with our experimental collaborators. The rest of my research effort is invested in analyzing specific living systems with reduced models for unraveling novel physical principles. The long-term goal of our research endeavor is two-fold: (i) to uncover basic mechanisms to help envision therapeutic strategies for diseases related to our immune system, (ii) to find novel physical principles that underlie host-microbe relations. Our research projects can be broadly classified into three interlinked themes: (1) Lymphocyte signaling and activation. (2) Host-microbe relation in polymicrobial infections (Otitis Media). (3) Physics of single cell and cell populations.